SEARCH GOT A UKULELE

23 Feb 2011

Ukulele nursery rhymes chords for parents with small children!

I have been contacted recently about whether very young children like the ukulele, and what songs should a parent play. In my mind, singing nursery rhymes to young children is a wonderful way for a parent to bond with a child and is also great for those learning how to play the ukulele. I am not saying you need a ukulele to do so (that is part of the beauty of the nursery rhyme, anyone can sing them) but, if you already have a ukulele and are starting to play it - then why not?

But I think nursery rhymes also work as great practice pieces for new players regardless of having children. You see - Nursery Rhymes are, in their very nature, simple songs. As such, if you are a beginner ukulele player, simple songs are perfect to practice with. Simple strums, easy chords, well known tunes. Add to that the fact that you probably know the words and melody and you must be on to a winner. I have a very young daughter, and she beams the biggest smile you can imagine when some of these are played with a soft simple strum on the ukulele to accompany them. Have fun!

Oh - and many people ask me on what ukulele I would recommend for small children. Well, my daughter has one of these and loves it! CLICK HERE

45
comments
:

Seriously, thank you so much! All your work here is wonderful (the ebook too!), but this is absolutely perfect. I'm learning uke to give my 10-month-old daughter even more music. She already loves hearing when my husband & I play the piano and when I sing. But she stops everything when she hears a guitar or uke on tv!

I've got no kids but these will help me to learn to sing whilst playing which I struggle with but like you say everyone knows the words to these so I'm hoping this could help me. Have to wait till tomorrow now or the people in flat upstairs will think I'm crackers singing nursery rhymes at 10pm !

Thank You! I am so excited to have this. I played Twinkle Twinkle Little Star while my 2 1/2 yr old granddaughter sang along with me. It was "total joy". Now I'll practice up on the other songs and teach the little ones those too! Fun at Grandma's house!

Thanks so much- very much a beginner so the sequences with c, f and g7 are my friends at the minute. Not looked at the other chords yet but great to have a couple of recognisable songs to work towards!

as a complete beginer (im talking a couple of days here) i also find it difficult to play the G and G7 chords! its seems near on imossibly to get my fingers in position. even though you can slow these songs down- its still very hard to play them without stopping every few seconds...any advice...?Thanks, Loz

The G and G7 appear in so much popular music that they really are chords I would recommend you trying your best to master from day one. You won't progress too far avoiding a G.

The alternative on these songs is to transpose the chords up or down in pitch, but whilst that will remove the G, it will introduce other chords, harder to play that appear less frequently in popular songs so that would seem a bit counter productive.

Sorry if that sounds unhelpful, but the G really is one of the most common chords

Trying to help though. I know some play the G by laying first finger across first three strings at second fret then tucking another finger on to the E string at the third fret. That won't help with G7 but they claim it's easier. I would perhaps excercise caution with it though as I'm not convinced its the easiest form of G to move from to another chord,

Also, in all the songs above you can easily substitute the G7 with a straight G and still get the tune. Sorry, but that doesn't avoid learning the G though!

Practice, Practice, Practice. That's what you need to do. I know exactly how you feel. It's like riding on a rocking horse, you feel like you're riding for hours, but not getting past the finish line. It'll come, Keep at it. Just keep practicing the chord changes : C to G, G to F, then F to G again, & again, & again. I personally find the 'G7' chord easier than the 'G'. Practice : C to G7, then G7 to F, then F back to G7, then drop down to C. I sometimes find myself playing a 'G7' chord in place of the 'G' chord. KEEP AT IT. GOOD LUCK.

i am abit more advanced with ukulele so i could play the chords but it was still fun my friend and i have made a vidio and we loads of fun while i play and we sing and especially when we noticed diffrences to the songs we know and guessing the songs we didn't know the tune too! but i know that some people have trouble with these chords but keep going soon they will be so easy and try to do it with a friend that way if you makem mistakes you can still have some laughs!

As a beginner I was having trouble with the G7 too until I cocked my wrist away from the fretboard. This allowed more room and freedom for my fingers to move. Hope that helps a little... it helped me A LOT when I tried it.

Mention the key words such as: ukulele, beginner, small children...and voila...you're the one I was looking for. I never got my hands on any instrument to focus on in my life. Am half a centenarian. I suddenly crave to be able to play a uke one day before an audience of little ones. I assist in a toddlers' program in our neighborhood at least once a week. I looked at different sites but I found what you put together-chords & songs simple for me to follow. Your labor is not in vain. Your words are an encouragement. The result is fun. You did a great job! Keep it up! So, thank you very much!

Thanks for yet another excellent review. I'm now torn between the Dolphin and the Octopus as a "starter" ukulele! Also I have been considering the Luna Tattoo Pineapple although that is more expensive (relatively speaking) but am struggling to find a review of it. Any suggestions/comments would be welcome!

Thank you so much for all the information and tips and reviews you are providing for all us newbies out here! VERY much appreciated!

After hours on this site and reading your ebook compilation I've acquired an Octopus and now need to transpose my very rusty guitar skills to the uke. All seems a wee bit cramped at the moment but i'll persevere. I've always had a hankering to try one but the impetus came from having three-year old triplets who love music, singing & dancing. They seem fascinated and certainly aren't going to be a passive audience. Any tips on getting them started Barry? What were your experiences with your daughter?

Thank Richard - re the kids - I say don't rush them. My daughter had a uke in her hands from the age of 2 and mainly just used it as a prop to let her pretend - she's 5 now and we are only just starting teaching chord shapes.

Got my ukulele last xmas as a present was so excited - spent ages practicing but slowly lost enthusiasm and felt frustrated I wasn't getting very far - then didn't play for quite some months - Today I picked it up strummed a bit then googled for help - and found your rhymes and music - I'm so thrilled It was so lovely and I was able to play - slowly but still could follow - the music and sing along - I'm over the moon.....Many many thanks Barry just perfect for me - I'm not a youngster I'm 69 but just love the rhymes and feel all enthusiastic again Yay!!!

Glad they helped - people called me crazy to suggest these were good for beginners - but the logic is sound - most people know the words, most people know the words, most people know the words - so there are three things you don't need to battle with!

Thanks Barry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You and these comments helped SSOOOOOOOOOOOOO much!!!!!!!!!!!!! My new uke is sick af!!!!!!!!!!!! These songs are super gr8 to get down to, str8 FIRRREEEEEEEEEEE! I play them at sick parties theyre a big hit with the youngins! even the teens have a blast jammin along! Im totes gonna have to share these with my squad! Thanks again its lit!!!!

I am a beginner myself. Been practicing and loving my uke for 2 months now. As a suggestion, you may want to look up for familiar songs and search the chords over the net. look for easy ones, also you can find tutorials on youtube. Thanks Barry!!! these nursery ryhmes are fantastic!

Do you enjoy this blog? Donate to help keeping it going!

If you enjoy this blog, donations are welcomed to allow me to invest more time in bringing you ukulele articles. Aside from the Google ads, I don't get paid to write this blog. Call it a labour of love! And, no, I don't get to keep the ukuleles that are loaned to to review...

Help keep Got A Ukulele going!

If you enjoy this blog, donations are welcomed to allow me to invest more time in bringing you ukulele articles. Aside from the Google ads, I don't get paid to write this blog. Thank you!